The invention relates to a motor vehicle comprising an automatic transmission with a P driving stage, an N driving stage and one or more forward and reverse driving stages, an electric parking brake device and an assistance system for outputting warning information.
In modern motor vehicles, an assistance system is used to monitor whether the vehicle has been actively shut down in a secure state by the driver when the driver leaves the vehicle. This secure state is usually issued if the driver has selected the P driving stage via its selector lever and has also engaged said P driving stage in the automatic transmission. However, sometimes the driver does not select the P driving stage, i.e. he shuts off the engine while the selector lever is still, for example, in the usually engaged D driving stage, that is to say a forward driving stage or in the R driving stage, that is to say the reverse driving stage. This is basically possible. If the driver then opens the driver's door, this is interpreted as being an intention to exit, i.e. the assistance system assumes that the driver wishes to leave the vehicle. The opening of the vehicle door is determined by a corresponding sensor with which the control device of the assistance system communicates. If the selector lever is then not in the P driving stage, in previously known vehicles, on the one hand, warning information, for example in the form of a text or flashing information or the like is usually output visually on the display of the combination instrument or a separate monitor, if appropriate assisted by a sound signal. At the same time, the electric parking brake device, which secures and safeguards the vehicle, is activated. The driver can then once more subsequently engage the P driving stage on the basis of this warning information.
However, the subsequent engagement of the P driving stage is actually not necessary after the vehicle has already been shut down in a secure state owing to the actuation of the electric parking brake device. Consequently, the outputting of the warning information is unnecessary and sometimes even confusing, since not every driver knows immediately what action is required of him.